The New Enemy: Salt

Unilever just announced it will reduce the sodium content in most of its 22,000 products by the end of 2010. In the past, Unilever has gone after trans fat, saturated fat and sugar, but now it is joining a growing list of companies and organizations struggling to tackle the latest bogeyman of nutrition: salt.

“Salt is the new bad guy and deserves to be,” Michael Jacobson of the Center for Science in the Public Interest says. “It’s the single most harmful thing in the food supply.” Salt has been linked with hypertension, heart disease and strokes.

But reducing salt can be a tricky matter, according to Kraft Foods senior VP of research and nutrition Todd Abraham, who participated in a salt reduction strategy conference hosted in Washington D.C. by the Institute of Medicine. “It’s a proven fact,” he said. “When companies sell products with reduced sodium labels, that’s pretty much the death of that product.”

Some companies have opted to reduce their salt without advertising the fact, hoping that consumers will be less likely to notice a change in taste if they’re not looking for it. But other companies are being more splashy about their salt reductions, especially for kids meals — a potentially great way to appeal to moms.

Campbell, which has been slowly reducing its salt levels for years, made sure to emphasize its low-sodium kids products, and Burger King recently cut the sodium levels in its kids meals. Even Denny’s, not known for its healthful options, is getting on board, getting rid of the more high-sodium choices on its kids menu, as well as reducing the salt-content of several regular menu items.

A March report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that Americans consume about twice as much sodium as they should — and about three fourths of salt consumed comes from restaurants or packaged food products, not from salt shakers. Those more susceptible to the negative effects of sodium include blacks, people with high blood pressure, and people over 40.

The city of New York — after banning trans fats and getting chain restaurants to list calories on their menus — has now turned its attention to salt, though it looks like the initial plan is to work with food companies rather than jump directly to legislation.